


I can wait

by Vanilla_Specs



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: All aboard the Gladnis ship, Character Death, Does the Final Fantasy verse have ghosts???, Fluff, Fuck Ardyn too while I'm at it, Fuck the Lucii, Ghosty boi, Gladio leaves Iggy voicemails, Gladio's sentimental, I lowkey believe gladnis is canon, I was sad and needed to vent, I'm Sorry, M/M, Noct is a guilty lil roll, Not Beta'd, Not that he's in this fic, Post Episode Ignis verse 2 bad ending, Prompto is mentioned, Why'd my boi have to die?!, aka the fic I killed off Iggy, like once or twice, no i'm not, spoilers?, they stole my precious boy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-16
Updated: 2019-06-16
Packaged: 2020-05-13 01:16:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19240879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vanilla_Specs/pseuds/Vanilla_Specs
Summary: Gladio grieves the loss of Ignis, only to find out quite suddenly he isn't completely gone just yet, only adding salt to the wound and possibly a bit of relief. If he manages to let go and accept reality for what it is, to help, Ignis makes him see the light.My summary is probably better than the fic so I'm sorry.





	I can wait

**Author's Note:**

> I'm 90% I can't write feelsy things but I tried? I apologise too much lol.

No matter how fast they sprinted, they knew they were too late. Ravus had taken them as far as he could without compromising his position, the rest was up to them, given that they were at a disadvantage as time was against them and their missing friend. Vaulting and climbing over the debris and fallen pieces of pillars and flooring they raced to find their lost friend, the only indication he was here being Ravus’ word and the signs of battle. No sooner had Ignis’ last words left him did the trio finally find him, Ardyn nowhere to be seen and an eerie stillness in the air.

“Ignis!” Noct’s voice trembled as he scrambled to his fallen friend, Gladio and Prompto not far behind him and just as desperate to see that he was okay, though the sight before them gave them little hope. While Noct and Prompto attempted to shake him awake, Gladio stood to the side and tried his best to hold back his tears much unlike the other two.

“Is he…? What the hell was he thinking?” Prompto sank to his knees and buried his face in his hands, Noct took Ignis’ hand and slid off the ring as the guilt started eating away at him. He knew exactly what his friend had done and why he’d done it but, he felt responsible for this, had he been stronger Ignis wouldn’t have felt obliged to go this far to protect him. Although all three of the Prince’s companions had made an oath to protect him with their lives, he never thought it would come to that and certainly not like this.

 “This is my fault. I- I wasn’t strong enough,” Prompto and Gladio both glanced at Noct, clearly hearing the undeniable guilt in his voice. “Cut the crap. We all knew what we signed up for, Iggy most of all, you woulda died without him so he did his job,” Incidentally, Gladio handled situations like this by covering his sadness with anger, unfortunately it was aimed at all three of them.

“Guys… We’re all to blame, we shoulda never split up, we all shoulda gone to help you,” Prompto’s voice was quiet as he returned his gaze to his fallen friend, eyes red and cheeks tear stained.

Noct rolled Ignis onto his back and instantly felt tears welling up again, seeing the scars marring his friends face was enough to break him, as well as Prompto and Gladio. Even the Shield couldn’t hold it together much longer. After a moment of silence Noct rose to his feet to face the crystal down the bridge, Prompto’s gaze followed him for a second before he too stood up.

“You better be ready Noct. Don’t let Ignis die in vain, don’t you dare waste his sacrifice- Or anyone else’s,” Gladio kept a stern tone, vastly different to Prompto’s quietness.

“Wait- Think about this Noct, we need you,” The gunman grabbed Noct’s arm and looked to Gladio for help, who of which just looked away with a scowl on his face.

“I won’t waste it; he was my friend too y’know. I’m sorry Prom… It’s now or never,” Noct wrenched his arm from Prompto’s grip, warping towards the crystal and taking one last looked at his friends, his heart sinking every time he glanced at his fallen comrade.

 

_A few weeks later_

 

Gladio sat by the campfire, just staring into the flames with little consideration for his surroundings, no concern for the daemons that might attack him. With Noct and Ignis gone and Prompto staying around Hammerhead, he was often alone in his hunts and endeavours, although he did have one comfort that was also a sad reminder. Wrapped around his wrist was Ignis’ necklace. Now that the daylight was pretty much non-existent, Gladio would often be seen hunting to pass the time, waiting for Noct to come back so they could finally end this madness.

Often, he would be camping at one of the old havens and when he wasn’t hunting, he’d be sitting at camp reminiscing about the past or leaving voicemails on Ignis’ phone, even though there was no way the adviser would ever be able to listen to them. He never really knew why he did it, there was just some comfort in hearing the voice on the receiver. Little did he know a certain someone was watching over him, unable to be seen, felt or heard, but he was there and always would be.

“Hey… I don’t really know why I keep doing this. I know you’re not gonna be able to listen to them or pick up but- I guess it’s my way of coping. If I can even call it that. With the sun finally gone now it’s just dark all the time, I never thought it’d happen but there you go. Where ever you are, I hope it’s better than here man, you’d have an aneurism I swear, everything’s pretty much the way you hated it,” Gladio paused for a second, listening for the sound of… Well anything. “On the brightside, Prompto’s still kicking and his optimism knows no bounds, he’s even confessed to Cindy, but she turned him down for now. Look, I know you can’t hear me, but I need you, now more than ever Specs. I miss you,” He hesitantly ended the message, looking at how many calls he’d made and felt foolish for keeping it up.

Beside him Ignis sat staring at the fire with little interest, he’d heard every message his friend left, and it hurt more everyday to know he was needed. He looked no different to when the others found him, burns marking his body and his hair and clothes a dishevelled mess, even the afterlife was distasteful and unrelenting.

Being a ghost of sorts wasn’t at all what the adviser had intended but he was drawn to the things his friends kept, keeping an eye on his friends was important, more important than moving on in fact. Sometimes he wished he were able to interact with his friends, even if they only knew he was there it would be enough, it might make them more cheerful to know that he was still around. Plus walking around without being seen or heard is enough to drive even the sanest of people crazy.

While he was staring at the fire, Gladio remembered walking out of Gralea. Ignis’ lifeless body in his arms because he refused to leave him there, an arm under his knees and the other held his shoulders, head rested against Gladio’s bare shoulder. To anyone else he might appear to be sleeping, but the once glorious green eyes would remain closed. Prompto was too busy having a break down so they left in silence, to say Gladio was hurting would be an understatement. It might sound odd to anyone else, but it really was a comfort having his necklace, it kept the of him memories alive. Not that he would ever be able to forget him. Ignis glanced over at his friend and sighed heavily, suddenly an idea popped into his head, he’d tried everything to communicate with Gladio except using the simplest thing. Paper and pen.

He stood up and searched for some sort of notepad and pen, thankfully there was one stashed in the tent and he recognised his own handwriting, Gladio had also kept his notepad of recipes, sigh of relief escaped when realised he could pick up the pen. If he could use the pen then perhaps, he could also touch the paper, experimentally he drew a simple smiley face on the paper and tore it from the notepad triumphantly, screwing it into a ball and throwing it at the back of Gladio’s head.

Said man instantly turned around with utter confusion written on his face. “I’m not in the mood for games. Whoever you are, get your ass out here,” Gladio narrowed his eyes at the tent and then picked up the paper ball, curiously unscrewing it only to be even more confused by the drawing, even as he entered the tent, he didn’t get an answer. He grabbed a torch and started walking around the haven to look for tracks or something but, unsurprisingly found nothing, only another piece of paper left on his chair. This time a pair of glasses drawn on it.

“Someone wake me up. There’s no way… It’s impossible. Iggy?” For the first time since he’d come back, Ignis smiled and felt relieved. Although Gladio’s face had gone from confused to utterly shocked, the colour drained from his face as he looked directly at Ignis. “Fucking hell. I’m dreaming. You’re not real,” Gladio’s voice wavered and he stepped towards his friend, reaching out a hand but looking more than disappointed when he felt nothing but air.

“So, magic, daemons and Gods can exist, but ghosts can’t? Did you ever actually listen to me?” In a second Gladio’s jaw dropped and he fell on his backside, staring up at the apparition before him absolutely gobsmacked.

“I just got sassed by a ghost… I’m losing my mind,” He was talking like a mad man for sure. Ignis just stood there silently watching Gladio freak out with a little amusement, it was rare for the shield to act so distressed, if only Prompto were here to take a picture of it.

“Are you done? You’ve been so brooding lately it’s almost out of character,” Gladio just sat there and glared.

“Same old you huh? Just ‘cause you’re dead don’t mean you can sass me, save that for Prompto or Noct, I’ll still kick your ass somehow,” Ignis clicked his tongue and kneeled down in front of Gladio, the shield not taking his eyes off his friend for a second, almost like he expected him to vanish.

“I can do as I please. But I’m afraid, I cannot stay,” A single tear rolled down Gladio’s cheek and that had Ignis raising an eyebrow in confusion.

“I missed you so much, but I didn’t know just how much until now. What the hell were you thinking?!” That sudden outburst made Ignis fall backwards and Gladio was on his knees, staring intently at his friend until he answered.

“Admittedly, I wasn’t thinking rationally, but I did what had to be done, it gave Noct the time he needed didn’t it? So why are you so angry? I can see it practically radiating off you,” Angry would be an understatement, a very big understatement at that, furious might be the appropriate word.

“You didn’t need to die Iggy! You didn’t need to do that; you were the smartest but made the stupidest choice! You- I had so much I needed to tell you, damn you!” While Ignis’ expression didn’t change, Gladio’s went from pure anger to verging on tears and then back to irritated to hide it.

“Would you rather dwell on the past and carry on moping like a child, or perhaps accept that it happened and move on? I certainly want to and I’m sure you do too, as a survivalist I half-expected you to travel in a group but here you are,” Ignis’ voice remained calm and collected after that brief offset, Gladio coming to his senses because of it.

“Spare me the lecture. Iggy… We lost you and Noct in one day, I can accept he’s gone ‘cause he’s coming back, but you’re not. You expect me to just fucking forget about you?!” Gladio rose to his feet and stared down at his friend, who of which just remained silent and frowning.

A moment of silence passed and Gladio used it to regain his composure and sat back down in his seat. “That is exactly what I expect. Gladio you knew the risks- We all did, regardless of the losses we’re to protect Noct,” It was obvious Ignis didn’t mean what he said, not entirely at least, nonetheless it still hurt the shield to hear. So once again there was a deafening silence, Ignis stood up and started pacing around the campfire, like he usually did when he was thinking or nervous.

“I refuse, damn you! Forget about duty for a sec, will you?! That’s what got you killed in the first place! I blamed Noct for so long because… If you hadn’t felt the need to protect him, you wouldn’t have needed to use that fucking ring, or- Go with Ardyn to Gralea for fucks sake!” With every word Gladio said his voice sounded more and more furious, Ignis paused his pacing to look at his friend with a pained expression.

“You seem to misunderstand my intentions. I knew full well what I was doing, reckless yes, I admit, and not thought out. Don’t blame Noct for my mistake but, had I done nothing he would have died and then where would we be?” Gladio could do naught but glare, had he been able to he would’ve punched Ignis for saying that. Instead he threw an icy glare towards the other and clenched his jaw.

“Ignis… I had something I wanted to ask you. I was waiting until after all this was over, then I decided I was gonna ask you in Altissia… But you had to go and be the hero,” Gladio forced himself to hold back his tears, remembering the events as clearly as though it was yesterday and reliving the pain all over again. Ignis on the other hand looked devastated, staring at the flames of the fire to distract himself from his thoughts and from his memories. 

Back in the days before the fall of Insomnia, before they were set to roll out on their road trip, by 13 Gladio had fallen head over heels for Ignis. At 17 he plucked up the courage to tell him how he felt, given that Ignis was almost always stoic and intimidating even as a boy. The memory of that day was still so vivid it made him feel like it was just yesterday. The young Shield didn’t intend to love his best friend and in fact he didn’t intend to fall in love with anyone, especially not that early on in his life, but despite that he didn’t regret it nor despise his feelings at all. Not once.

“Gladio… I’m sorry, truly. However, I do not regret my decision, merely that it ended in such a way,” Ignis spoke quietly, fearful of his own words.

“Damn you Iggy. I hated you for what you did- For leaving me like that- It was my job to protect Noct. He’s gonna need you when he comes back-” Gladio paused for a moment to gauge Ignis’ reactions but the man remained passive. “Y’know what I was gonna ask you? After all this shit blew over?”

Ignis huffed and glanced at Gladio momentarily. “Unfortunately, I’m clueless as to what your referring to,” Green eyes narrowed as he stared at the Shield, awaiting an answer or a quip of some kind.

“Well- I always just joked about it back in the day but- This time it was gonna be for real. I uh- I was gonna ask you to marry me,” Gladio fell silent and there was an eerie vibe to it, it may have been the darkness and sounds of daemons in the distance but it just made the Shield all the more nervous, given that Ignis couldn’t well answer now. At least not in a way that it would matter, he’s gone and not coming back, not for real anyways.

“There aren’t enough words I can use to apologise but know that I’ll be waiting for you when the time comes, perhaps then you can make good on that,” Ignis said, the underlying guilt apparent in his voice. Even so, Gladio couldn’t help but smile at the slight optimism, however he knew there was a catch.

The Shield turned away from the fire to look at Ignis again, fighting the urge to try and embrace him or let his tears fall freely. “I get the feeling it ain’t that easy, you ain’t telling me something Iggy, spill it.”

“You’re sharper than I remember. I’d like to say it’s simple but that’s warrant another wave of abuse, you have to let me go, Gladio.” To Ignis’ own dismay he could feel tears pricking in his eyes, confused as to how that’s possible but not so distracted to let them fall willingly. Even in death he felt it unseemly to cry in front of another.

“Bullshit. I just got you back and now you’re telling me to let you go? I thought I made it obvious how I feel about that. Y’know how happy Prompto would be to see you? Noct?”

“Unfortunately, I don’t have that kind of time, so I’d prefer if they didn’t know. I’m not asking you as a colleague or out of a sense of duty, I’m asking you because it’ll be easier for us both. I don’t want to leave knowing you’re still grieving and feeling guilty, and I don’t want you not knowing I’ll be waiting for you on the other end if you let go, because until you do I’m here and likely invisible to you.”

Once again Gladio had to fight himself for control over his emotions, this time he was losing the battle. “I’m done fighting Iggy. I’ve got nothing left now, holding onto you was all that kept me going, even Noct couldn’t make me fight if he was here. I guess… If it makes things easier… I still hate you though.”

Ignis offered a small smile to lighten the mood but it was hopeless, Gladio had lost him once and now he was going to lose him all over again. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, you know where I’ll be, take care Gladio… Noct will need you so make sure you survive.”

Gladio gave up his internal conflict and his tears fell freely down his cheeks, a bright blue light beside him made him wince until he realised what it was. Ignis was stood there, no longer a complete wreck and scarred, but clean and wound free, smiling despite the obviousness that he too was crying. He then disappeared in a similar way to their weapons, like a shattered crystal enveloped in a blue light, leaving Gladio alone once again and feeling hollower than before but a certain weight was lifted.

 

 

 


End file.
